The Tomb Robber To His Beloved

when i touched you
you shuddered
and turned to gold
brighter than god on the eastern horizon.
i kissed you and you gasped
and became speechless.

your silence, my love
is more precious to me
than all the words wasted
in hymns and songs of praise.

you waited for me, and i did not come
hour after hour passed and still
you remained
and the thousand frogs on the banks of the river sang:

there is no law save change
there is no cause save hunger
there is no truth save desire
and this - you too belong to the company
of those who overcome.

when you come and go
entranced by this delusion
you draw near and then shy away
i have held you countless times
only to have you twist free from my arms.
you don’t tell me, but it’s so obvious what you’re afraid of.

tonight i will draw you close again
and you will know
all that you are has been obliterated in me

and i will rejoice in you
as the seed rejoices in the death of the blossom
as night rejoices in the end of the day.

all that i am, too
will be blown away like dust on the wind
will fade, like rats feet disappearing down dusty corridors
like the whisper of a lover at dawn
and my whisper to you

but let this be my promise to you
i will remain in the realms of memory
for i am already immortal